When thrust headlong into desperate struggle after desperate struggle, all for the sake of scraping out an existence in a ruined world, a certain degree of one's humanity was not only an expected loss, but sometimes a necessary sacrifice. How much someone could sacrifice without losing themselves entirely was an equation best left untested. After several years of bearing witness to the slow erosion of Rick's capacity for mercy and compassion with outsiders, Daryl had a damned good idea of the other man's limits. Probably knew them better than his own limits, all things considered, and he had to if he hoped to have any chance of ensuring Rick didn't lose himself again. Or worse.
The last time they'd had the misfortune of being unarmed, outnumbered, and with their backs to the wall, Rick had improvised and ripped out a man's throat with his teeth. Rick no longer had the barrel of a gun pressed to his head, Carl and Michonne were no longer in danger of having unspeakable horrors visited upon them, and Daryl was no longer pinned to the ground by men intent on beating him to death, but somehow the current threat was no less concrete. And they couldn't take on the whole of the Capitol on their own.
It shouldn't have been as tempting as it was, the urge to release Rick and goad him into action in the way Daryl knew precisely how to, but the thought of the consequential avoxing and public executions stayed his hand. The fact was, he would bear the imagined humiliation of Jason's dismissal for the both of them, if only to keep Rick — and Beth — as safe as they could be, in this place. Had Rick been in a more stable state of mind and their positions were reversed, he'd have doubtless been willing to do the same for Daryl.
"Head's so far up his own ass he could chew his food again on the way down," he muttered dryly. The conversation was probably beyond salvaging at this point, so he wasn't going to hold back his opinion anymore. "The secondhand embarrassment's killin' me. C'mon." He tugged on the arm he still held, employing enough insistent force to make Rick have to pull against him if he planned on staying where he was. "Rick," he implored in an undertone. This might as well have been another Woodbury, another 'Governor'. There was no reasoning with men like that.
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The last time they'd had the misfortune of being unarmed, outnumbered, and with their backs to the wall, Rick had improvised and ripped out a man's throat with his teeth. Rick no longer had the barrel of a gun pressed to his head, Carl and Michonne were no longer in danger of having unspeakable horrors visited upon them, and Daryl was no longer pinned to the ground by men intent on beating him to death, but somehow the current threat was no less concrete. And they couldn't take on the whole of the Capitol on their own.
It shouldn't have been as tempting as it was, the urge to release Rick and goad him into action in the way Daryl knew precisely how to, but the thought of the consequential avoxing and public executions stayed his hand. The fact was, he would bear the imagined humiliation of Jason's dismissal for the both of them, if only to keep Rick — and Beth — as safe as they could be, in this place. Had Rick been in a more stable state of mind and their positions were reversed, he'd have doubtless been willing to do the same for Daryl.
"Head's so far up his own ass he could chew his food again on the way down," he muttered dryly. The conversation was probably beyond salvaging at this point, so he wasn't going to hold back his opinion anymore. "The secondhand embarrassment's killin' me. C'mon." He tugged on the arm he still held, employing enough insistent force to make Rick have to pull against him if he planned on staying where he was. "Rick," he implored in an undertone. This might as well have been another Woodbury, another 'Governor'. There was no reasoning with men like that.